Do you need a permit to remodel? Plus lead-safe rules

Call your building department, or check its website, and ask:

• Whether your project needs a building permit, and whether the plumbing, electrical or gas work needs its own permit.
• Who can apply: you, or only the contractor.
• What the fee is, and which inspections follow.

Then ask each remodeler who applies for the permit and whether the fee is in the price.

Some states' codes say finish work like this needs no building permit. Plumbing, wiring and structural changes are a different matter, so ask about those.

• Connecticut: the State Building Code doesn't require a permit for painting, papering, tiling, carpeting, cabinets, countertops and similar finish work that doesn't involve structural changes.^1-2
• Massachusetts: the state building code doesn't require a building permit for painting, papering, tiling, carpeting, cabinets, countertops and similar finish work, though electrical, plumbing or gas permits may still apply.^3-4
• Minnesota: the state residential code is enforced only where a city or county has adopted it, and where it applies, it doesn't require a permit for painting, papering, tiling, carpeting, cabinets, countertops and similar finish work.^5-8
• Ohio: the Residential Code of Ohio doesn't require approval for painting, papering, tiling, carpeting, cabinets, countertops and similar finish work, though the work must still meet the code.^9-10
• Rhode Island: permits aren't required for painting, papering, tiling, carpeting, cabinets, countertops and similar finish work, but plumbing, electrical and structural work still need permits.¹¹
• Oregon: no building permit is needed to apply paint, paper, tile or similar finish work on walls, floors and ceilings, or to install carpet, cabinets or countertops. Replacing a sink, toilet or faucet that isn't concealed in a wall, and regrouting tile, need no plumbing permit.^12-15
• Virginia: no permit or inspection is needed for ordinary repairs, including installing or replacing floor finishes, replacing interior wall or ceiling finishes, installing or replacing cabinetry or trim, painting or wallpapering, and replacing plumbing fixtures without changing the supply, drain or vent pipes.^16-18
• New Jersey: ordinary maintenance needs no permit or notice. That includes painting, wallpapering, interior finishes on less than 25 percent of the wall area in a one or two family home, cabinets and other built-in furnishings, trim, new flooring, and replacing faucets, traps and fixtures with similar ones without changing the pipes. Work that affects the structure, the ways out of the home, piping or wiring isn't ordinary maintenance.^19-20
• New York: the state code itself doesn't exempt finish work. Local building departments may choose to exempt painting, wallpapering, tiling, carpeting and similar finish work from permits, but they don't have to.^21-24
• New Mexico: the state's permit rule removes the model code's exemption for finish work, so ask your building department before tiling, cabinet or countertop work.^25-26

Some states set their lines by the kind or size of the job:

• North Carolina: no building permit is needed for work costing $40,000 or less in a single-family home that follows the State Building Code, unless it involves load-bearing structure, a change in plumbing design, new or changed heating, air conditioning or electrical wiring or equipment (other than like-kind replacement of devices and light fixtures), materials the code doesn't allow, added roofing, or Fire Code work.^27-30
• Pennsylvania: an ordinary repair needs no permit, but cutting away a load-bearing wall, removing structural members, changing the ways out of the home, and adding or moving piping, wiring or mechanical work aren't ordinary repairs.^31-34
• Wisconsin: the Uniform Dwelling Code doesn't cover repairs or maintenance of a home or its electrical, plumbing and heating and cooling systems, and permits for additions, alterations and repairs are required only where a local ordinance requires them.³⁵
• Tennessee: the state's residential code program applies only where the city or county doesn't enforce its own codes and hasn't opted out. It covers new homes and additions of 30 square feet or more of interior space, and renovation, such as painting, papering, tiling, carpeting, cabinet and countertop installation and floor finishing, isn't construction under its rule.^36-37 Ask your city or county codes office about local permits.

• California: the 2025 California Residential Code took effect January 1, 2026 and applies statewide.^38-39
• Florida: the Florida Building Code is adopted for use statewide without local adoption and is enforced by local building departments.^40-42
• Kentucky: the Kentucky Residential Code is the mandatory state code for homes, but permits and inspections for a single-family home are required only where a local ordinance requires them.⁴³
• Missouri: there's no statewide residential building code. County commissions in first and second class counties may adopt a building code and issue permits.⁴⁴
• Vermont: there's no statewide building code for owner-occupied single-family homes, which aren't "public buildings" under state law. Rentals, condominiums and cooperatives are.^45-46

These are examples from the states whose permit rules we've read on an official page. Other states' rules aren't in this guide yet, and that doesn't mean they have none. Each state's rules page on this site, such as Connecticut's, North Carolina's, New Mexico's and Pennsylvania's, says what we've found. Find yours from the home page.

Fees are set locally. Published kitchen and bath permit fees run a few hundred dollars; kitchens up to about $1,500, and large jobs up to $2,500.^47-50

Here's what two cities charge, from their 2026 fee schedules:

• Pleasanton, California charges $535 for a kitchen permit and $375 for a bath, plus a 5% technology fee, state fees, and plan review when plans are needed.⁵¹
• Falls Church, Virginia charges about $175 for a kitchen electrical permit and $200 to $350 for kitchen or bath plumbing, plus a building permit by square foot.⁵²

Your city's fees may be higher or lower. The cost guides for kitchens and bathrooms cover what the work itself costs.

Federal rules set how remodelers work in older homes. Target housing is any housing built before 1978, except housing for the elderly or people with disabilities and homes with no separate bedroom, such as studio apartments, unless a child under 6 lives there or is expected to.⁵³ The EPA's lead-safe renovation rules apply to work in it.⁵⁴

• The firm: any firm paid to do renovations that disturb paint in homes, child care facilities and preschools built before 1978 has to apply for certification, which lasts up to five years.⁵⁵
• The renovator: a certified renovator has passed a renovator course accredited by the EPA or by an EPA-authorized state or tribal program,⁵⁶ and a Lead-Safe Certified firm has to assign one to every renovation it does.⁵⁵
• The pamphlet: Renovate Right is the EPA's lead hazard pamphlet for families, child care providers and schools.⁵⁶ No more than 60 days before starting work in target housing, the renovation firm has to give the owner a copy and get a written acknowledgment that they received it, or mail it and keep a certificate of mailing at least 7 days before the work starts.⁵⁴

The EPA's certificate covers the states without an EPA-authorized program of their own. Some states, including Georgia, North Carolina, Oregon and Wisconsin, run their own.⁵⁷ In those states a firm gets its lead-safe certification from the state, not the EPA:

• Georgia: the Georgia Environmental Protection Division runs the program.^58-59
• North Carolina: the Health Hazards Control Unit of the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services runs it.^{58, 60}
• Oregon: the Oregon Health Authority runs it.^{58, 61}
• Wisconsin: the Wisconsin Department of Health Services runs it.^{58, 62}

In states without their own program, such as Pennsylvania, Ohio and Texas, a firm doing renovation, repair or painting work in a home built before 1978 needs the EPA's lead-safe firm certification and a certified renovator.⁵⁸ Each state's rules page names who runs the program there.

Pick your state's rules page

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County pages on this site show the share of homes built before 1980, from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey (2020 to 2024 5-year estimates). Find your county from the home page. That share also counts homes built in 1978 and 1979, which the lead-safe rules don't cover, so your own home's year is what matters.

If your home was built before 1978, ask each remodeler for their firm's lead-safe certification and the name of the certified renovator on your job, and expect the Renovate Right pamphlet before work starts. The verify guide covers what else to check.

When you're ready, you can ask for quotes from remodelers near you.